Visit Bran Castle, also known as "Dracula's Castle" in Transylvania

For those of you who are history lovers or maybe perhaps have in interest in the fictional character, Dracula, Romania is the place to go. In central Romania on the border between Transylvania and Wallachia lies Bran Castle, or also commonly known as “Dracula’s Castle”.

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In the 14th century this castle was built on the edge of a hill in order to stop the Ottoman Empire from expanding. It later was used as a customs post and has been moved through many hands since. There is plenty of history and fiction that is based on this castle.

Many do not believe that this castle is at all related to Count Dracula as Bram Stoker, the author of the 1897 “Dracula” never actually visited Romania let alone the Bran Castle. But the warlord Prince Vlad the Impaler whom supposedly inspired the fictional story spent time locked up in the castle.

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The 22-acre castle was later opened up as a museum and now this 57 room castle sees over half a million tourists per year. Much of the furniture that resides in the castle is not original but part of the collection of Queen Marie who was the last Queen Consort of Romania in the early 20th century.

The castle is open all year round, but the ideal time to visit is the low season, from October to March. The crowds can be quite overwhelming during the peak season. The price for an adult ticket is around £6 but there are discounts for students, seniors and school groups. Make sure to have comfortable shoes as there are many narrow staircases that are scattered around the castle and are worth exploring.